Korean J Obstet Gynecol.  2006 Jan;49(1):5-17.

Recent Trends of Prenatal Screening for Down Syndrome

• Kim MY

Abstract

Prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome requires an invasive test in women considered to be at high risk after screening. At present, there are variable screening tests. For a 5% false-positive rate, the sensitivities are approximately 20-30% for maternal age alone, 60-70% for maternal age and second-trimester maternal serum markers, 85% for maternal age with fetal nuchal translucency and maternal serum free beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (beta-hCG) and pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) at 11-14 weeks, and 94% for maternal age with fetal nuchal translucency and maternal serum free beta-human chorionic gonadotropin (beta-hCG) and pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) at 11-14 weeks following second-trimester maternal serum markers. This article examines the studies of screening for Down syndrome and summarizes the results from major studies reporting on the implementation of this method.

Keyword

Down syndrome; Screening tests; Serum markers; Nuchal translucency

MeSH Terms

Biomarkers
Chorionic Gonadotropin
Down Syndrome*
Female
Humans
Mass Screening
Maternal Age
Nuchal Translucency Measurement
Pregnancy-Associated Plasma Protein-A
Prenatal Diagnosis*
Chorionic Gonadotropin
Pregnancy-Associated Plasma Protein-A